Teachers' group demands Abbott keep Texas schools closed, require remote learning

The Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA) demanded that Gov. Greg Abbott issue an order to keep school buildings closed and have classes held remotely until it’s safe to reopen.

“We demand that Gov. Abbott issue a statewide order that all school buildings remain closed and all instruction be provided remotely until the pandemic has clearly begun to subside and it is safe to reopen school buildings under strict safety standards,” TSTA President Ovidia Molina said in a press release from the TSTA News website.

The Texas Education Agency and local school districts must decide when the time is right for individual school districts to reopen by working with health experts and educators.

Molina said the state must provide full state funding during remote learning, according to the press release. 

Giving school districts more time to reopen schools without penalizing them isn’t what students and educators need, Molina said.

“Educators, students and their parents need assurance that school buildings will not be reopened until it is safe to do so. Right now, with the pandemic still raging across Texas, we don’t know when that will be,” she said in the press release. 

Districts need the funds to give students everything they need for remote learning at home rather than forcing school districts to hold in-person instruction, she said.

TSTA issues its own Standards for Safe Schools for students, schools and communities.